Blood Moon Lake

Chapter 22

Setting the bag on the floor, I noticed grass had sprung up in between cracks on the floor. The stones were a drab gray color. Tree branches grew through some of the holes in the roof, casting shadows along the floor.

Rain dripped down the branches, landing on the floor with a plop. I shivered. My wet clothes clung to my skin. I need to get these off before I catch a cold. Unzipping the backpack, I stuck my hand in and began pulling out clothes. Five different sets of clothes soon lay on the floor.

"Hey," I called, "Come grab a change of clothes. We can let these dry overnight. Same with the shoes."

Ella kicked off her boots and peeled off her socks. Her nose wrinkled as she watched them drip water on the floor. "You don't need to tell me twice."

Walking over, she looked through the clothes until she found something her size. "I'll be back."

She disappeared down the hall, and I felt my heart rate spike. What if something gets her? Someone grabbed something beside me. Glancing up, I saw Anna with clothes in hand.

"I'm gonna join her," she said, "You boys wait till we get back."

I relaxed slightly as Anna went down the hall. At least Ella won't be by herself. There is safety in numbers after all.

Jack picked up a pair of clothes and began to change, discarding his wet clothes and stake on the floor.

"Hey Luke, can you toss me a pair?" Leo asked.

Grabbing a set, I balled them up and chucked them at him. Catching the ball of clothes, he started to strip. Picking up the last set, I started wrangling my soaking clothes off. Soon enough, all three of us had changed. A few moments later, the girls came in freshly changed.

Anna blinked in surprise. "Oh, you already changed."

I shrugged. "Yeah, no point in waiting."

She wrinkled her nose. "What if we walked in on you?"

"But you didn't," I pointed out.

She shook her head. "Whatever."

Water ran down my face from my hair. I frowned. Ugh, that's going to be super annoying. I glanced at the backpack. I wonder if there are any towels inside. Grabbing the bag, I dug through it and pulled out five blankets. Okay, not exactly what I'm looking for, but they'll work.

Taking one of the blankets, I used a corner to pat my hair dry. Pulling it away, the water was no longer dripping down my face. Perfect. I wrapped it around my shoulders, making sure the wet corner was far away from me. I turned my gaze to the other four. "Anyone want a blanket?"

Jack's eyes lit up. "Yes, please!"

Handing it to him, I watched as he wrapped it tightly around himself.

Ella snatched one from the pile. "I'll take one."

I rolled my eyes in amusement and looked at Leo, who wasn't paying attention. His eyes darted around the room. I frowned. Is he looking for something? I looked around. There was nothing. Picking up a blanket, I lobbed it at him. It hit him in the side of the head.

Leo glared but wrapped the blanket around himself. That's when I noticed he was still wearing my blondie shirt.

"Are you still wearing my shirt!?" I asked.

He glanced down at it. "You mean my shirt?"

"No, it's mine," I told him.

He raised an eyebrow. "Maybe before, but I've been wearing it long enough, it's mine now. You'll have to buy one for yourself."